#recreateresponsibly

🥁 Drum roll, please! 🥁

We would like to introduce you to the winners of the 2023 Get Into Your Sanctuary Photo Contest.

Sanctuary Life

1st: Douglas Hoffman in Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary

2nd: Jean Zuo in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

3rd: Douglas Croft in Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary

Sanctuary Recreation

1st: Chuck Graham in Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary

2nd: Daniel Eidsmoe in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

3rd: Bryan Dort in Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Sanctuary Views

1st: Bruce Sudweeks in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

2nd: Martin McClure in Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary

3rd: Courtney Stanford in Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary

Sanctuaries at Home

1st: Laurie Santoro

2nd: Tina Morrison

3rd: Jenn Fletcher

Sanctuaries Around the World

1st: María Rodríguez-Salinas

2nd: Lawrence Alex Wu

3rd: Kayvon Malek

Congratulations to all the outstanding photographers who entered our 2023 Get Into Your Sanctuary Photo Contest. Don’t forget to check out the winners and honorable mentions on our results page:

As a person not raised in the western U.S., I met my first marmot when I moved to the Cascade Mountains. What fascinating and cool creatures, I thought. Their lifestyle is certainly appealing to some folks. Some of us might very well like to sleep for many months. Crawl out of your burrow when the snow melts. Then proceed to chow down as much as possible while setting some aside some food  for emergency stores in the winter. Plus their homes are in some of the most beautiful places around.

Here are Mount Rainier National Park, our marmots are hoary marmots. Hoary as in frosted, and geesh does it look good on them? They’re found in the subalpine meadow areas of the park. Perhaps you’ve noticed one or two?

What has fascinated you about these little animals? Is it their amazing whistle to warn their companions about nearby predators? Is it how they can radically increase their body weight to get through winter? Or how about their great method of cooling down; lay spread eagle on a rock. What’s your favorite marmot fact, picture, or story? ~ams

Please remember that while hoary marmots appear fluffy and squishy, they are also wild animals. Please give them space and never feed a wild animal. For more information please visit this website https://www.nps.gov/mora/learn/nature/rodents.htm

Today kicks off #GreatOutdoorsMonth! The more than 245 million acres of public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management offer a wide variety of diverse landscapes that feature unique and memorable experiences as vast as the land itself. This summer, we invite you to explore the outdoors with us, but please do so safely and responsibly.

Following guidance from the White House, CDC, and state and local public health authorities, we are increasing access and services to BLM-managed public lands, offices and facilities in a phased approach based on regional, state, and local conditions. Before visiting, please contact your local BLM office to check operating status and current conditions: www.blm.gov/contact.

If you go outdoors, please #RecreateResponsibly by being prepared, flexible and respectful of other users, as well as of the natural and cultural resources on public lands.

Tips to Recreate Safely and Responsibly:

Stay home if you don’t feel well or have recently been sick.

Follow guidance from local and state authorities, as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Avoid heavily used or crowded trails, parking areas, and sites and seek     dispersed recreation opportunities in your local area. Have a backup plan  to avoid crowded high-use areas. If you find an area to be crowded, turn around.

Check with local offices for current conditions, including closures and changes in service, before visiting popular areas and visit blm.gov for operating status updates.

Practice social distancing. Be considerate of others enjoying the outdoors by giving them as much space as possible in parking lots, at trailheads, and out on public lands.

Help prevent human-caused wildfires. Completely extinguish campfires by using the “drown, stir and feel” method. Don’t park on dry grass and ensure tow chains aren't dragging and tow straps are secured. Observe fire danger restrictions on BLM lands designated as high-risk early in this fire season. Follow fireworks restrictions and target shooting requirements at all times.

Avoid unnecessary risks while recreating to prevent overwhelming medical facilities.

Bring supplies for sanitation with you and pack out your trash. Facilities,     including bathrooms and visitor centers, may not be open or available for  in-person contact.

If you’re unable to visit #yourpubliclands, please continue following along with us on our social media for plenty of virtual trips through our ongoing #ArmchairAdventures.

Resources:

Visit your public lands: www.blm.gov/visit

Updates about the overall BLM response to COVID-19: https://www.blm.gov/alert/coronavirus-advisory

CDC Information on Protecting yourself: www.coronavirus.gov

Wildfire information: https://www.nifc.gov/fireInfo/nfn.htm

Leave No Trace ethics: https://lnt.org/why/7-principles/

Tread Lightly principles: https://www.treadlightly.org/learn/

I integrate art with geography. Mimicking cartographers, I create maps to correspond with each demerit badge. To illustrate how going off trail causes erosion, I painted a topographical map of Devil's Backbone, the park's marked trails, and my imagined human created off shoots from those trails. I chose burlap as the structure material because it is similar to erosion control blankets that are used to prevent erosion on hillsides. I chose a neutral color for the topographical lines to show that they are natural, green for the trail to show that staying on the trail is environmentally friendly, and red for the footpaths that go off trail to show the earth bleeding from the human impact. Next, I painted another topographical map without any trails to show the park without human presence. The white represents the earth in its pure, virgin state before humankind tainted it. The topographical lines are green to show how the earth was a paradise, flourishing without human presence. 

I cut each map into strips that shrank in size as I went from one end to the next and arranged them together into one elongated map, alternating strips between each map. I used twine to weave the two maps together. The bottom starts with a wide strip of the map untouched by humans. I followed it with a very tightly woven tiny strip of the burlap map. It is barely visible to show how when one person goes off trail the mark is barely visible. As I progressed upward, the strips of map without human presence gradually shrink in size and get woven more, becoming less visible. Meanwhile, the strips of map with human presence get wider and more visible. The weaving is very loosely woven and looks as though it may fall apart at any given moment.

Get ready, get set, Get Into Your Sanctuary!

Don't forget your camera! Our 2024 #GetIntoYourSanctuary Photo Contest opens today 📸